Dreams of Gold: the Mel Fisher Story

James Goldstone(1986)

Review

Our Score

by John Marriott

A dramatisation of Mel Fisher's obsessive 17-year search for a treasure-laden 17th-century galleon off the Florida coast, which threatened his family unity and led to a battle through the courts. This tale of doggedness and derring-do is yet another obvious metaphor for the pursuit of the American Dream and, though inevitably episodic, it is handled with quiet efficiency. Cliff Robertson, a lobster trapper in his youth and well-known Hollywood square peg, looks particularly at home, while Loretta Swit - "Hot Lips" in TV's MASH - fits the bill as his wife.

Summary

Fact-based drama about a treasure-hunter's 17-year search for the wreck of a Spanish galleon which sank without trace off the Florida coast during a storm in 1622. Starring Cliff Robertson, Loretta Swit, Ed O'Rose and Scott Paulin.